Our Founding Fathers would be proud of Gov. Kate Brown.

Yesterday the Governor of Oregon signed into law a bill that heretofore would have gone unnoticed in the annals of American history. But in these contentious times it may mark a turning point away from a very disturbing trend in America. That trend is one that is currently being set in 22 other U.S. states, and is solidified by more than 500 new laws all designed to prevent qualified American citizens from voting. In opposition to this trend, the same person who introduced the Oregon bill also signed it into law. Her name is Kate Brown, and she is the new shining star among America’s governors.

Gov. Brown made it the law of the land in Oregon that every citizen who reaches voting age, and who is licensed to drive, is also automatically entered into the voting rolls and is sent a ballot by the state. No one is obligated to vote, but in Oregon citizens have the opportunity to do so without the need to wind their way through a maze of obstacles designed to stop them. This new opportunity is a trend buster. Oregonians and the country have Kate Brown to thank for honoring one of our most sacred rights.

The right to vote is sacred, and protecting this right is everyone’s responsibility. But under the guise of “voter fraud,” Republican legislators in a growing number of states have managed to pass an unconscionable number of laws that are now preventing low-income voters, the disadvantaged, and immigrants from voting. Their objective is clear: the preponderance of voters in these groups vote Democratic, so by putting more and more obstacles in their paths, the number who can vote falls precipitously, thus giving Republican candidates an undeserved edge when the ballots are counted. The obstacles put up are myriad from shortened voting hours, to fewer polling places in large voting districts, to easy registration for the well-off, and difficult tests for the poor. The obstacles are very creative, but they are as dishonest as they are insulting to freedom loving citizens everywhere. In conjunction with gerrymandering of voting districts, and unlimited funds pouring into their coffers from undisclosed sources, the American voting map is now grossly skewed in favor of Republican candidates. Unfortunately, we cannot all move to Oregon in search of that ideal that used to distinguish us on the world scene—freedom from the tyranny of ideologues.